Pope praises Singapore’s skyscrapers, seeks care for lowest migrant workers

Chief Executive Officer of the Singapore’s National Parks Board Hwang Yu-Ning presents Pope Francis with a ‘Dendrobium His Holiness Pope Francis,’ a specially bred orchid variety named after him at the Parliament House in Singapore, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. Pope Francis flew to Singapore on Wednesday for the final leg of his trip through Asia, arriving in one of the world’s richest countries from one of its poorest after a record-setting final Mass in East Timor. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

SINGAPORE (AP) — Pope Francis on Thursday praised Singapore’s economic strength as a testament to human ingenuity but urged the city-state to look after the weakest, too, especially foreign workers, as he opened the final leg of his tour through some of Asia’s poorest countries in one of the world’s richest.

Singapore celebrated his arrival by unveiling a new hybrid orchid named for him, the “Dendrobium His Holiness Pope Francis.”

Presented during an official welcome ceremony, the orchid “exudes a serene and pure beauty” of ivory white petals with a pink tinge at the center, according to the National Parks Board.

Pope Francis arrived in Singapore from East Timor and began his official program Thursday by meeting with President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Prime Minister Lawrence Wong before addressing government authorities and the diplomatic corps at the National University of Singapore.

There, Pope Francis marveled at Singapore’s modern skyscrapers “that seem to rise from the sea” and the government’s commitment to providing public housing and quality education and health care to its people.

But he urged authorities to beware of rewarding excellence at all costs, a reference to Singapore’s highly competitive work and educational culture.

“I would like to highlight the risk entailed in focusing solely on pragmatism or placing merit above all things, namely the unintended consequence of justifying the exclusion of those on the margins from benefiting from progress,” he said.

In a common appeal from history’s first Latin American pope, Pope Francis called especially for dignified pay and conditions for migrant workers, who have helped build Singapore into one of the world’s most advanced economic powerhouses.

“These workers contribute a great deal to society and should be guaranteed a fair wage,” he said.

Singapore has no minimum wage policy for locals or foreigners.

The state is the last stop of Pope Francis’ 11-day tour that is the longest and farthest of his papacy after earlier stops in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and East Timor.

The economic disparities were obvious upon arrival Wednesday as Francis landed in Singapore’s high-tech airport aboard the lone aircraft belonging to Aero Dili, the national carrier of East Timor, where around 42% of its people live below the poverty line.

Singapore has long touted as a success story its transformation from a colonial port lacking natural resources into a financial and trade power in just a few decades since independence from Malaysia in 1965.

The former British colony enjoys one of the highest living standards in the world, and is known for its safety and low crime rate.

But it is also one of the most expensive cities to live in and its competitive work environment makes for a stressful, overworked people.

Foreigners account for over a third of Singapore’s workforce, and more than 250,000 are migrant workers from Pakistan, Bangladesh and other poorer Asian countries.

Most work in construction, shipping and maintenance jobs, helping to support Singapore’s trade-reliant economy.

Human Rights Watch said in a report last year that foreign migrant workers in the city-state face labor rights abuses and exploitation through exorbitant debts owed to recruitment agents, non-payment of wages, restrictions on movement, confiscation of passports, and sometimes physical and sexual violence.

It said foreign domestic workers are excluded from many key labor protections, such as limits on daily work hours and sick leave and annual leave protections.

In his remarks to the pope, President Shanmugaratnam highlighted Singapore’s commitment to environmental sustainability and interfaith harmony, saying both were the result of hard work and dedication over decades.

“We are a multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural society,” he said. “For us, solidarity and harmony have therefore been at the core, and will remain core features in our national development.”

He praised Pope Francis’ consistent call to care for God’s creation, saying Singapore too had made sustainability a priority ever since independence nearly six decades ago.

Singapore’s greening plan through 2030 envisages greater reliance on solar energy, waste reduction and imposition of carbon taxes to transition to a low-carbon economy.

“As a small city-state, we have sought to balance development with environmental responsibility,” he said.

Pope Francis is visiting Singapore to encourage its Catholics, who make up about 3.5% of the population of just under 6 million, while highlighting Singapore’s tradition of interfaith coexistence.

According to a 2020 census, Buddhists make up about 31% of the population, Christians 19% and Muslims 15%, while about a fifth of the population claimed no religious belief whatsoever.

Pope Francis celebrates Mass later Thursday in Singapore’s national stadium and will preside over an interfaith youth event Friday morning before returning to Rome.